The well-known Kebele Bike Workshop, serving the community for more than 11 years, was ripped off by a former volunteer earlier this month.
Harvey Tadman, who over the past year had been heavily involved in the daily operation and organization of the bike workshop, and also well-known through Critical Mass and the St. Werburghs’s Bike Project, emptied the workshop’s account on 14 March. He had no authority to do so, having been asked to leave both the Kebele Co-op and the Bike Workshop at the beginning of February.
The money stolen included a £900 grant that was given to the Kebele Bike Workshop specifically to run bike maintenance classes, on the basis of an application made by Tadman, by the Easton Neighbourhood Renewal scheme.
He was able to withdraw the money from the Bike Workshop account, protected by needing two signatures for transactions, by illicitly adding someone unrelated to Kebele to the account two days before making the withdrawal.
In a text message to Kebele members, Tadman wrote, ‘The resources stay to maintain/support bikes in Easton’. When confronted by Kebele members on 21 March, Tadman claimed that he had contacted the funders, and that they had given him permission to use the grant money ‘elsewhere’. Neither Easton Neighbourhood Renewal not grant managers Quartet Community Funding could confirm any contact from Tadman, and he has refused to provide any proof.
Kebele contacted Tadman and demanded that the money be returned in full, both the money belonging to the Bike Workshop and Kebele as a whole, and the grant money, designated for use by Kebele Bike Workshop. He has not responded.
Kebele has decided to release this information publicly as we feel we have a responsibility to warn other groups with whom this individual might be involved.
Other organizations, workshops, and community groups should take note that if Harvey Tadman offers any resources, in the form of money, bike tools, parts, or other, they are stolen property. He is not to be trusted.